Beginner's Longevity Plan

1-MONTH “BETTER-HEALTH & LONGEVITY” STARTER PLAN
(Print this one-pager, stick it on the fridge, tick the boxes daily)

FOCUS AREA 1 – EAT A LITTLE BETTER
Goal: Add 3 longevity foods, subtract 3 ultra-processed foods, never go hungry.

Week 1 – “Add, don’t subtract”
□ Add 1 fist-size serving of any vegetable to lunch & dinner (frozen veg counts).
□ Drink 1 extra glass of water before your first coffee/tea.
□ Keep a “food selfie” note in your phone: snap or write everything you eat (no judgment, just awareness).

Week 2 – Upgrade carbs & fats
□ Swap white bread/pasta/rice for the 50-whole-grain version (half-and-half is fine).
□ Use 1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil or a ¼ avocado instead of butter/mayo once a day.
□ Add 1 palm-size serving of beans or lentils to any meal (canned, rinsed = perfect).

Week 3 – Protein & colour boost
□ Make at least 1 meal a big salad or blended veg soup with a hard-boiled egg, tofu, or canned salmon.
□ Add 1 handful of colourful berries or fruit to breakfast.
□ Remove 1 sugary drink or sweet snack; replace with sparkling water or 2 squares 70 % dark chocolate.

Week 4 – 12-hour eating window
□ Pick any 12 h window (e.g., 7 am–7 pm); eat inside it, sip water/herbal tea outside it.
□ Cook 1 new recipe from a Mediterranean or Okinawan cookbook/YouTube.
□ Celebrate: list 3 foods you now enjoy that you barely ate 4 weeks ago.

FOCUS AREA 2 – MOVE MORE (NO GYM NEEDED)
Goal: 150 min light-to-moderate movement + 2 micro-strength sessions per week.

Week 1 – Build the habit hook
□ Pick an existing daily cue (after morning coffee, after lunch, end of workday).
□ Walk (or march in place) 5 min immediately after that cue × 5 days.
□ Weekend: one 15-min brisk walk or bike ride; note how you feel after.

Week 2 – Double the dose
□ Lengthen the daily walk to 10 min; aim for 6 000–7 000 total steps (phone tracker).
□ Add “stand & stretch 1 min” every hour you sit (set phone alarm).
□ Try 1 “exercise snack”: 10 body-weight squats + 10 wall push-ups before shower.

Week 3 – Add light strength
□ Keep walking 10 min/day.
□ Twice this week do the 10-min “Beginner Strength Circuit” (no equipment):
– 12 squats to chair
– 10 knee push-ups
– 20-sec plank or dead-bug
– Repeat ×2. (YouTube “body-weight circuit for absolute beginners” if unsure.)
□ One walk becomes 20 min; include 3 × 1-min faster intervals.

Week 4 – Make it stick
□ Schedule 3 × 20-min walks in calendar like appointments.
□ Strength circuit 3×/week; add a backpack with 1–2 kg books for extra load.
□ Test yourself: walk 1 mile (1.6 km) briskly and time it—record as your baseline.

FOCUS AREA 3 – SLEEP & DE-STRESS
Goal: ≥7 h sleep 5 nights/week + 1 daily 5-min recovery ritual.

Week 1 – Anchor bedtime
□ Pick a fixed bedtime (e.g., 10:30 pm) and pre-bed alarm 30 min before; when it rings, lights dim, screens off.
□ Write tomorrow’s top 3 tasks on paper—brain dump reduces worry.
□ Bedroom: <19 °C (66 °F), phone outside or on airplane mode.

Week 2 – Evening speed-bumps
□ Replace 30 min of late-night scrolling with reading fiction or stretching.
□ Caffeine curfew: none after 2 pm (switch to decaf or herbal tea).
□ If mind races, try 4-7-8 breathing: inhale 4 s, hold 7 s, exhale 8 s ×4 cycles.

Week 3 – Morning light & micro-recoveries
□ Within 30 min of waking, get 5 min outdoor daylight (balances circadian rhythm).
□ Mid-day 5-min “box breathing” (inhale 4 s, hold 4, exhale 4, hold 4) ×10 rounds; set phone reminder.
□ Keep a “gratitude quick-list”: jot 3 things you’re glad happened today (proven to lower stress markers).

Week 4 – Lock it in
□ Track sleep with free app or diary; aim for 85 % of nights ≥7 h.
□ Create a Sunday 20-min “stress audit”: write what drained you, what restored you, pick 1 restoring activity to repeat next week.
□ Celebrate: compare Day-1 morning energy (1–10 scale) with Day-30; expect +2 points.

DAILY 60-SECOND CHECK-BOX
□ 3-colour veg or fruit
□ 5+ min movement
□ Glass of water before caffeine
□ Lights out within 30 min of chosen bedtime
□ 1 deep-breath break (≥5 conscious breaths)

If you hit ≥4 boxes 25 of the next 30 days, you’ve built the core habits that predict longer, healthier life.